Current Research

Position Paper

For this project, you will compose a Position Paper that will be the basis for what your character espouses in the RTTP game. In other words, this paper will serve as the foundation for the speech you give during the game. In addition to using your Greenwich Village, 1913 text and Role Sheet, you will be required to conduct additional research to understand your character’s biography and the historical situation that propelled your character to “step up to the podium to speak.” You will be asked to begin a Research Log that you will utilize throughout this project, and on subsequent projects during the semester, that you will submit with your Portfolio at the end of the semester.

What to Write

You are joining an ongoing conversation about an issue that is important to your character in Greenwich Village. Based on the instructions from your RTTP Role Sheet, and on the research you conducted for Writing Project 1,take a stand on a key aspect of a controversial issue. If you are assigned a faction, your areas of interest will be obvious. If you are an indeterminate, you have more options, but you must write “on behalf of your character.” Consider how your argument will provide a unique and fresh contribution to this ongoing conversation in Greenwich Village. Prove your thesis by constructing a well organized argument using this Argumentative Guide and by using effective rhetorical devices.

To Help You Get Started...

Respond to the following brainstorming prompts to help you begin drafting, clarify key points and to formulate a thesis:

What issue of the day will you write about? (Suffrage, birth control, labor issues, bohemianism, etc.)

What is your character’s stand? You must make an arguable, debatable claim in this paper. What is the essential argument you wish to prove?

Provide historical context. What sequence of events occurred that led to the event or issue?

Based on your previous research, who are the key players and what are their perspectives?

What is the political context of the issue? How did this issue play out in the political arena?

Are there factions or groups who would disagree with you? What are their views? How can you refute their arguments?

Project Document Requirements

The paper must follow the MLA academic method of documentation. Papers without proper academic documentation will receive an automatic grade of "Zero."

In order to meet the requirements of the assignment, 4-6 pages are likely needed, typed, double-spaced, 12" font.

You will likely need to cite some outside sources, in addition to your Reacting to the Past text and your Role Sheet. Focus on locating books from the library or articles from the databases for your historical research. AVOID GOOGLE BASED SEARCHES.

While you may consult primary source documents your character may have written, you may not “copy” these, or use direct quotes from these. You have to construct an original argument, but one that is still true to your character’s viewpoints.

This paper will require multiple drafts, including evidence of peer response. Save all versions of your drafts to include with your end of semester portfolio.